Kieran Harper is changing as a player in more ways than one.  Arriving at Aegis Park via the 2010 Draft, he was a slim athlete but highly regarded among recruiters and footy experts around the country as a goal sneak with an uncanny ability to slot goals from any angle.

Heading into his third year, the 20-year old is beginning to turn heads and looks ready to make his mark.  While he managed to play every game in 2012, Harper is being driven by some of his not so great performances.

“There were a few games where I was pretty low on possessions and it was pretty frustrating,” he told nmfc.com.au.

“Each year my expectations have been going up and up.  The first year it was to try and get a game and last year it was to be consistent.  I know now that I can compete at the level but I need to have more of an impact on each game.”

Harper has been standing out during pre-season training at North due to his electrifying pace, improved skills and most significantly, his size.

“I have a certain playing weight that I want to get to and that’s about another two kilos more than what I am now.  I’ve tapped into our fitness coaches and they’ve been helping me get stronger and bigger." 

It may also help him with a possible position change.

“Going into my third year now, it was good playing as a forward in the past because I didn’t need that weight in order to compete, but hopefully I can play a bit more in the midfield this year and use the extra weight to my advantage.  To be really competitive in the midfield, you need to have some weight to throw around and go up against the bigger guys.

“In the long run I’d like to play there rather than solely forward.  I think I can use my pace to break out of the packs a bit and then rest forward.  That gives me the opportunity to still have a crack at the goals but I’d prefer to be one of the ones delivering the ball to Drew (Petrie) and allow him to kick the goals.  Being higher up the ground might give me a bit more room to run which would be great but at the end of the day, it’s all about where Brad (Scott) wants me to play."

But Harper says increasing size quickly does have its disadvantages.

“Putting on the weight and keeping the fitness up at the same time has been pretty hard but it’s all gone a long way to helping me be more competitive.  I was pretty thin when I got here and have added about eight kilos since then which has been really helpful for my footy.  I was always hoping to put on good weight, but I didn’t know how fast or how long it would take me to put it on.

“When you put on weight, it’s hard to keep up your fitness because you're carrying that extra couple of kilos…so I feel like my fitness has dropped off a little bit but I’m trying to pick it all up now and get back to where I was pre-Christmas.”

With role models all over the ground, the youngster feels like he is spoiled for choice and says he’s getting a solid education on playing in the middle.

“In my first year I really focused on what Boomer (Brent Harvey) did, but this year I want to take what I can off watching and training close with Daniel Wells.  Just watching where he runs and his running patterns because he’s so good at breaking the lines and using his speed so that’s my goal…to see what he does and try and emulate him.

“Wellsy hasn’t been out on the track as much with his achilles injury so he’s been pitching in at training and when I do something good, he always tells me why it was good and the same goes if I make a mistake.”

A potential role-change isn’t new to him either.

“I played a bit of ruck when I was a junior because back then I had the height and could jump a little bit but I’ve always wanted to play midfield and never wanted to be stuck in the forward line.  I want to add more strings to my bow and play a variety of roles.

“There’s a lot of players here that can run through the midfield, that’s why having the ability to play more than one role is so important.  But like I said before, Brad will put us where he thinks we are best suited and in spots that will give us the best chance of winning.”